Singapore businesses far less upbeat compared with rest of Asean: survey

Singapore

ASEAN businesses may be among the most bullish in the world, but Singapore companies are far less confident about their growth prospects in the coming year, striking a worrying note for Singapore's outlook as it struggles to get out of its slump amid a global economic slowdown.

According to an annual global trade navigator report by HSBC, Singapore's business sentiment is at odds with the rest of Asean; only 65 per cent of Singapore companies expect their sales to grow in the next 12 months, considerably lower than the 81 per cent in Asean projecting growth in the year ahead.

Singapor…